Posted by Chris Parkinson
a resident of Willowgate
on Mar 25, 2013 at 2:48 pm

Bravo Otto!

Sink CAHSR down below the tracks about 100 feet by boring a tunnel Gilroy to San Francisco and elevators and escalators stations down to the new tracks. When completed, get rid of CalTrain and convert the tracks to other uses like parks. I gave that idea to CAHSRA San Francisco Division and they like it. Continue the support and contact the CAHSRA San Francisco Division and tell them to core bore the tracks Gilroy to San Francisco under our cities with new 200 MPH tracks only for the high speed rail. CalTrain has killed 110 plus people in ten years on those tracks and injuries in the thousands. BART a similar system to what I pros3e no deaths and no injuries related to their tracks. CalTrain is a washed up crestfallen dinosaur that needs to go away. We are Silicon Valley yet with CalTrain we are washed up on a shore of WW2 era technology.

Posted by Estuardo
a resident of Monta Loma
on Mar 25, 2013 at 7:47 pm

I agree that we should have the underground tunnel from Gilroy to San Francisco to help prevent any more tragic deaths. If the train tracks are elevated (shoofly) some cities may be divided in two, and that idea may not be supported by some residents. While stations with escalators and the required infrastructure are costly, they are worth it, as they could save lives.

It is time that we, as a community, demand that the public transportation in Silicon Valley becomes state of the art.
Other countries such as France, Germany and Japan (to mention a few) already have these systems in place.

How many more deaths need to occur before our elected officials take action, the right action, for our communities?

Posted by One who knows
a resident of Rex Manor
on Mar 25, 2013 at 8:20 pm

If someone wants to end their life, they will. It is not an issue of the structure of trains & tracks. Wake up. The billions should go to mental health services not building more elaborate transportation systems (though the need for mass transit exists, this is another discussion).

Posted by What?
a resident of Old Mountain View
on Mar 25, 2013 at 8:51 pm

Who said this was a suicide? Are you all assuming that? We lost a family friend on the tracks in MV as she walked home from church in the morning on Rengstorff. It wasn't suicide. She was older and we think she wasn't anticipating a bullet train. Let's not make assumptions.

Posted by KT
a resident of Old Mountain View
on Mar 25, 2013 at 9:29 pm

One who knows.....you are so right! I don't understand why people don't listen! People need help!! Free and MORE AVAILABLE therapy! Not fancy tracks worth billions! People who are hopeless will go somewhere else and then we will have to retrofit that structure to prevent suicides! I would say that you can assume it was a suicide and not an accidental death, just look at the statistics!!
So sorry for this loss, it is such a shame!

If that engineer wasn't in such a hurry, he would have been able to stop in time. We need better crosswalks for the tracks, maybe some that light up when you push the button. More stop signs would help them keep their speed down too. A 25mph speed limit should be enforced! I read here that a pedestrian's chances for survival are much better at slower speeds. We all just need to allow more time to get where we're going.
Sound familiar?

All of you who want to dig a tunnel from San Francisco to Gilroy...how much are you willing to put in to pay for that? People get hit by cars...should we outlaw cars? People get hit by bicyclists...should we outlaw bicycles? People jump from bridges....should we not build bridges? People get electrocuted...should we stop using electricity? It is time for people to take some personal responsibility instead of expecting that the world will adjust to them. Have some common sense in understanding the full impact of things before jumping to a "solution" that would just create something else for you to complain about.

Posted by Greg David
a resident of Old Mountain View
on Mar 26, 2013 at 11:35 am

@What

I'm sorry for the loss of your family friend, but if they were not adequately warned by the lights, bells, and gate that came down in front of them, then they should not be out on their own because they are unable to take care of themselves. Their family is at fault for not adequately caring for them and allowing them to somehow end up on the tracks.

Trains do not kill people. Period.

If your car stalls on the tracks... Get out.
When the gates come down, don't go around them.
When a train passes through a station at 79mph, step back.

Stop blaming the objects for tragedies and take personal responsibility for your actions and for protecting those that can't do so themselves. This INCLUDES the depressed, suicidal, and mentally I'll amongst us.

I don't feel what I have written has made a joke of the original article. I was just pointing out poor journalism and a general attitude of blaming the objects and not the people involved in a tragedy.

I don't suggest a tunnel from Gilroy to SF. That's asinine. Yes, we need grade separated railroads, but more for efficiency than safety. People who choose to end their lives will do no matter where you put the train tracks.